7 Guaranteed Steps for a Career Boost in 2016

It’s the start of a new year with new hopes, new opportunities, new adventures, new goals and new plans. Along with some personal life improvements, I think it’s the best time to reset our career plans as well, giving them a whole new direction!

Use this month wisely for a clear career spike in the year ahead.

Here are the top 7 steps to take for a much healthy career in 2016:

1) Make a One-Year Plan

Write down a clear one-year plan. Be true to yourself and do not under/overestimate your potential. Be precise about your goals and objectives. You might have a plan to get a raise or move to another job. Writing it down with the steps of how you’ll be achieving it can be the right first step.

2) Get Career Advice

Contacting a career counseling service or hiring a coach may get you past obstacles. Alternatively, you may think about having a deep conversation with an experienced person you trust. Don’t be shy, everyone get stuck in career once in a while.

3) Revamp your LinkedIn Profile

Publishing an article on LinkedIn about your profession, getting to know at least 6 people who can help you get some spike in career, adding the skills that matter and deleting those that have less to do with your job hunt, are the best steps you can take. Get yourself known by actively participating in what’s hot. Give some valuable feedback, comment on posts that concern your skills and reach out to every opportunity you come across.

4) Stylize that Resume

There is nothing worse than a resume that has been badly written or stylized. Search for tips and tricks to write a good resume. Also, get your hands on an attractive resume template. Trythese 275 free resume templates.

5) Practice Common Interview Questions

Consult experts or just friends and make a list of top interview questions. Learn how to answer these questions the best possible way.

6) Improve a Skill

Focus on a skill that really matter to your professional growth. This should definitely be in compliance with your personal interests. Just plan to give 4-5 hours per week for learning that skilland you’ll be off and running in no time.

7) Pin your achievements

Often times we get demotivated when we haven’t made a good achievement for a long period of time. Making a list of accomplishments, no matter big or small, can help give us a boost. The achievements may include personal, professional or academic ones. They can make us realize our true potential.

These are the minimum steps you should take to give your career a complete new direction.

Increasing your current work capacity remarkably should also be taken into account, for the reason just follow these tried and tested steps:

A writer at heart & developer by profession, I have particular interest in entrepreneurship, health and inspirational topics. I love reading and learning new skills. If I were to choose between a diamond necklace and a library I wouldn’t take a second in opting out for the library.

I can’t agree more with the resumé advice! Before leaving my last company a few months ago to write full time, I was in a hiring position. The amount of AWFUL resumés I saw was embarrassing. You have 10 seconds to catch my attention when I’m sifting through a stack of 60 resumés. Make the most of it.

Hi Jan,
Thanks for liking!
That’s some quality information you provided me about résumé. I never knew they are checked in 10 sec. That’s too short period to impress someone.
Well, thanks for the insight 🙂

Oh man! So many good tips. I’ve definitely been working on my one year plan the last week or so as far as what I want to see happen with my career. I’m also working on self talk and moving with intention which has been helpful for moving through some of the culture at work.

Hey Ashima,
Last year I was facing a similar situation when trying everything never seemed to be working. But what I didn’t realize was that I was still improving everyday. The hard work payed late, true, but trust me, IT DID!
Keep on trying and it will be totally worth it at the end 🙂
All the very best to you for your struggle!